Greg Jelks Australian Baseball Hall of Fame Inductee

06 November 2022 By Staff Writers

By Staff Writers

Greg Jelks Australian Baseball Hall of Fame Inductee

Baseball Australia is pleased to announce that Greg Jelks has been inducted into the Australian Baseball Hall of Fame for 2022

At the height of its popularity in the mid to late 90’s it could be argued that the Australian Baseball League had no brighter star than US import Greg Jelks. Jelks began his ABL career with the Perth Heat in 1993 bringing instant credibility to the league as a former major leaguer with the Philadelphia Phillies. His talent was undeniable, blasting 63 home runs across 282 ABL games while boasting a career batting average of .334.

Following his illustrious playing career Jelks continued his contributions to the game by coaching the Australian National team, including the 2000 Sydney Olympics, and managing at various levels including the Perth Heat, junior state and national teams, and club baseball.

Sadly, Jelks passed away suddenly in 2017 but will always be remembered for the talent and charisma he brought to the game during a period of unprecedented growth and development in Australia. At the time of his passing, Baseball WA chief executive Lachlan Dale said Jelks changed the sport in WA and “put it on the map” during an association that lasted more than two decades.

“He was integral to the success of the Perth Heat and WA Baseball over the past 23 years,” Mr Dale said. “Many people will still remember the days of watching the famous 44 play at Parry Field during the 90s.”

“A true gentleman of the game, Greg will be sadly missed by the baseball community, but his legacy will forever live on.”

Greg’s contribution to the game makes him a worthy and deserving inductee to the Australian Baseball Hall of Fame

“It was obvious his baseball ability was unlike anything we had seen before. Greg adopted Australia as his second home and became part of the baseball family. As dominant as he was on the field, one of his major strengths was the impact he had through coaching at many levels, and his continued promotion of baseball.”
Tony Adamson – Baseball Australia Hall of Fame Inductee 2005

“Just saying that name sends shivers down pitchers and third basemen spines everywhere! Greg was a great baseball player, the most feared hitter in the league swinging the black magic.”
Graeme Lloyd – Baseball Australia Hall of Fame Inductee 2005

Greg Jelks Baseball Biography

Player

A.B.L. PERTH HEAT Team: 1993, 1994, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001

A.B.L. MELBOURNE Monarchs: 1996

Infielder / DH
282 Games
.334 Batting Average
.615 Slugging %
63 Home Runs
4 seasons with more than 10 home runs.
21 Home Runs in 1998 (tied for 3rd – all-time single season record)

A.B.L. All Star Teams

1993 [Shortstop First Team)
1994 (Shortstop First Team]
1997 [D/H Second Team]
1998 (D/H Second Team)

Australian Team Member:

1997 (14th Inter/Cup, Spain. BRONZE Medal, World All-Star Team DH)
1998 (4 Nation Tour of Japan – June)
1998 (Haarlem Series, Holland. July)
1998 (33rd World Cup, Italy. August)

Coach / Manager

WA Claxton Shield Team Assistant Coach 2002-2005

Perth Heat Head Coach 2006

Perth Heat Assistant Coach 2007 – 2016

Australian Team Coach:

1999 (versus Japan)
1999 (15th Inter/Cup, Sydney. GOLD Medal)
2000 (Olympic Games, Sydney)
2001 (34th World Cup, Taipei)
2006 (World Baseball Classic)

04 November 2022 By Staff Writers

By Staff Writers

- Team Australia

U-23 BASEBALL WORLD CUP RECAP

Team Australia have concluded their IV WBSC U-23 Baseball World Cup with a 3-0 victory over World Number 2, Chinese Taipei in the final game of the Super Round to finish sixth.

In an outstanding achievement Team Australia’s Chris Burke was named in the outfield as part of the IV WBSC U-23 Baseball World Cup All-World Team.

The WBSC’s U-23 World Championship was contested over 50 games, with the world’s best young baseball prospects and teams battling it out over eleven days of competition.

Team Australia featured in Group B along with World No 3 and 2014 bronze medallists Korea, No. 4 Mexico, No. 8 Netherlands, No. 9 Cuba who finished fourth in 2022 and No.16 Puerto Rico in what was a tight race for the three Super Round spots.

The tournament followed the usual WBSC World Cup format with the 12 teams being split into two groups of six teams, with the top three finishers of each group competing for the title in the Super Round. The first and second-place teams of the super round will play for the title.

In Team Australia’s final game of the Super Round, Australia took advantage of four walks allowed by Chinese Taipei starter Chen Wei Lin and held on to the lead, delivering a solid performance in pitching and defence to close out their campaign.

In earlier matches Australia kicked off their campaign with a narrow loss to Mexico (3-2) and Korea (4-3) before defeating the Netherlands (5-4) and Puerto Rico (8-0) in a double header after two rain days. They lost their last pool game to Cuba (3-0) which made it an anxious wait to find out if the group had made it through to the Super Round. They eventually went through as the second ranked team after five teams all finished 2-3 but Team Australia had the best run differential of them.

World No.1 Japan was to strong (2-1) against Team Australia in game 1 of the Super Round and a late charge by Team Australia wasn’t enough to get back Columbia, falling in score (8-6). David Nilsson’s men ended the tournament on a good note securing the win against Number 2 ranked Chinese Taipei on the final day.

To keep up with all the action head to Team Australia’s Facebook and Instagram pages.

22 October 2022 By Staff Writers

By Staff Writers

- Aussies Abroad

DARCY LONGSTAFF SIGNS PROFESSIONAL CONTRACT WITH THE CINCINNATI REDS

Baseball Australia wishes to congratulate Victorian Darcy Longstaff who has signed a professional contract with the Cincinnati Reds. Longstaff, a product of the Waverley Baseball Club, will head across to Spring Training in 2023.

He will join Queenslander Ben Walmsley within the Reds organisation who has just completed his first professional season. He will also be following in the footsteps of his brother Reece who has just completed his freshman year at Arizona Western.

Follow the hundreds of players Abroad here: Aussies Abroad | Baseball.com.au

18 October 2022 By Staff Writers

By Staff Writers

- Team Australia

TEAM AUSTRALIA'S OPPONENTS & SCHEDULE AT THE 2023 WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC LOCKED IN!

Team Australia’s opponents and schedule at the 2023 World Baseball Classic (WBC) has been finalised.

Australia will compete in Group B with some of the best countries in the world including Japan (#1), South Korea (#3), Czech Republic (#14) and China (#21).

Australia, currently placed 10th in the WBSC Rankings, will travel to Tokyo to face their Group B opponents from March 9-13. Each team will play each other once in the tournament’s opening round.

There are four groups of five teams across the tournament with opening round games in Taiwan, Japan and the United States.

The top two teams from each group will advance to the second round in Tokyo from March 15-16.

The championship round will be contested in Miami from March 19–21

The WBC is an international professional baseball tournament featuring the best players from across the globe. The 2023 tournament will be the fifth edition of the WBC after 2021 was cancelled due to COVID-19. The last one happened in 2017.

Australia has played in all four previous World Baseball Classics but has yet to advance to the second round.

This summer is important for Australian baseball players vying to make the roster for the most prestigious baseball tournament in the world.

Coaching staff and selectors will have plenty of upcoming opportunities to scout talent. The first comes next weekend when Team Australia plays the Perth Heat in an exhibition series from October 28-30 in Western Australia.

The best test will come November 9-10 when Australia travels to Tokyo to play Japan in a two-game exhibition series.

The Australian Baseball League starts November 10 with ten rounds of exciting baseball featuring teams from across the country, New Zealand and Korea.

Some of the country’s best young talent is also currently competing at the Under-23 World Cup in Taiwan.

Stay tuned to baseball.com.au for more information as the tournament approaches.

GROUPS AND SCHEDULE

Group A – Contested in Taichung, Taiwan from March 8–13.
Panama
Chinese Taipei
Cuba
Netherlands
Italy

Group B – Contested in Tokyo, Japan from March 9-13
Australia
China
Czech Republic
Japan
South Korea

Group C – Contested in Phoenix, USA from March 11-15
Canada
Colombia
Great Britain
Mexico
USA

Group D – Contested in Miami, USA from March 11-15
Dominican Republic
Israel
Nicaragua
Puerto Rico
Venezuela

TEAM AUSTRALIA SCHEDULE (local time)

March 9 – vs South Korea (12:00PM)
March 11 – vs China (12:00PM)
March 12 – vs Japan (7:00PM)
March 13 – vs Czech Republic (12:00PM)

Written by Eric Balner for Baseball Australia

13 October 2022 By Staff Writers

By Staff Writers

National Participation Plan

BASEBALL AUSTRALIA TO GROW GAME WITH NATIONAL PARTICIPATION PLAN

Baseball Australia is proud to launch the National Participation Plan 2022 to 2027. This plan has been designed through consultation with our stakeholders and will take us all working together to achieve our goals.

The plan focuses on three main segments those who play the game, those who put on the game and those who facilitate the game. Our success will be based on growth in all three of these segments.

Baseball Australia has worked with the Member Associations to be able to outline the role each of us play in the implementation of this plan and look forward to working with them all.

Baseball Australia CEO Glenn Williams is excited about launching the plan with those who love the game.

“During the process we have identified the themes and then prioritised them based on what will see us able to provide amazing experiences for everyone participating in Baseball.”

“We have had a collaborative approach to developing the plan, working closely with our State and Territory partners, this plan maps out how we will work together to help the grow the sport we all love”

Baseball Australia is committed to ensuring that the delivery of the plan is supportive and empowering to those best placed to deliver it, that we are all aligned and united to ensure we are working together to deliver, is insight driven by ensuring our decision making is driven by data and insight and are customer focused by putting our customers at the centre of our decision making.

To read more about the National Participation Plan and how you can grow the game CLICK HERE

11 October 2022 By Staff Writers

By Staff Writers

Australian Youth Championships The Perfect Game

SUMMER OF BASEBALL - THE PERFECT GAME AND THE AUTRALIAN YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIPS UNITE

Baseball Australia have locked in an exciting summer of baseball for talented young players.

Over the course of late December into early January, in partnership with The Perfect Game, six international teams will be arriving on our shores to play a series of 48 games over nine days against Under 18 state squads in Brisbane, Melbourne, Geelong and Sydney. The games, held from December 29^th to January 6^th will provide additional competition opportunities for players that will be going on to play at the 2023 Australian Youth Championships in mid January.

The Australian Youth Championships will be held a Blacktown International Sports Park, where both the Under 16 and Under 18 events will be held for the first time since January 2020. The revised Championship format will see further innovation from the 2022 U16 AYC’s held in Redcliffe during the July school holidays.

Players will arrive into Sydney on the 9^th of January prior to taking part in Showcase activities and workouts presented by The Perfect Game on the 10^th and 11^th. Teams will then move into six double header days of completion to crown the Australian Champions with the finals being played on the 17^th of January. In all, over 60 games will be played across the six days of competition, with all games of Field one broadcasted and games on fields 2 and 3 also streamed.

The event will see further integration of strategic partners with Synergy Sport once again providing scouting analysis of the event at both age groups, and the attendance of Driveline Baseball at the Championships to provide workshops and coach education for the 50+ coaches who volunteer their time to support the AYC teams.

General Manager – Performance Pathways & Player Development Michael Crooks was excited about the summer ahead: “We have been waiting desperately for not just our country but the world to open up again for key under age baseball events. Over the last two years, we have been working incredibly closely with our state associations, The Perfect Game, Driveline Baseball and Synergy Sport to execute the plans that we have been making to both rethink and revision what a summer of baseball can look like for our talented young players. These plans will come to life in January and we cannot wait for everyone in attendance to see the program that has been set for the teams.

Crooks was especially buoyed by the opportunities created by the inbound Perfect Game teams.

“We have spent close to two years working with The Perfect Game on how we can create opportunities for US based teams to come to Australia at the right time of year to play our state teams. The timing of the games is perfect preparation leading into the AYC’s, and it will provide a fantastic framework of where we can build into South Australia and Western Australia in the summer of 2023/24 then reach down to the U16 age group the following year.

The selection process for State teams is well underway, with squads of 20 players to be announced by State Associations in the coming weeks.

06 October 2022 By Staff Writers

By Staff Writers

College Baseball

STAGG AND BERTUCCI COMMIT TO THE DEFENDING JUNIOR COLLEGE NATIONAL CHAMPIONS

Max Stagg (SA) and Nick Bertucci (VIC) have both committed to Central Arizona to begin their college baseball careers.

Central Arizona is the defending Junior College National Champions and have won two of the last three Division 1 Junior College World Series.

The commitment to Central Arizona wraps up a huge few months for Stagg who had this to say about his development and the process:

“Committing to Central Arizona means so much to me. To have the opportunity to play at a tier 1 junior college program and be able to continue developing my craft as a baseball player is really exciting. I can’t wait to start working with the coaching staff over there as well as fight for a national championship.”

“It has been a long but very thoughtful process for me. The opportunities of attending Perfect Game National Showcase, the U18 World Cup, and the MLB College Showcase Tour have really exposed me to a much wider range of high-level colleges. I am very grateful for the opportunities Baseball Australia, Perfect Game and MLB have provided me with and I can’t thank them enough.”

“I would like to give a huge thanks to Riley Moore (Baseball SA High Performance Manager) and the West Torrens Baseball Club for playing a huge role in my development and my journey.”

“Committing with Nick is really special. Throughout the World Cup experience, we became much closer as mates and are super excited to continue working together to reach the goals we each aspire to.”

It has been a goal of Nick’s to further his career in the States and that dream has now become a reality for the talented Victorian.

“Having been able to get the chance to come to the States has led to the opportunity of committing with Central Arizona College, an opportunity that I’m very much appreciative for, as prior to coming to America I had my eyes on furthering my schooling and baseball career with Central Arizona and now I get to say I’m a Vaquero.”

“The opportunity wouldn’t have been possible without being able to train with their squad and I have been fortunate enough to showcase my skills, which they were fond of and offered me a scholarship alongside Max Stagg which we both agreed to and will have a successful time with Central Arizona especially with a familiar face around.”

“It is an amazing school with an amazing program and is exactly what I was aiming for. My family and I are super excited that this is the school I will be attending and couldn’t ask for much more. Dreams really do come true when you put the work in.”

Stagg and Bertucci will remain in Arizona to represent Australia as part of the MLB World Select Team in front of colleges and professional scouts.

They become the first players out of the U18 National Team to narrow down their college commitment with others still in the recruiting process and currently deciding their futures.

Baseball Australia would like to congratulate both athletes on their amazing achievements thus far and look forward to seeing them compete in one of the best college programs in the U.S.

04 October 2022 By Staff Writers

By Staff Writers

- Team Australia

TEAM AUSTRALIA ANNOUNCES LINE-UP TO TAKE ON SAMURAI JAPAN

The Team Australia line-up to take on World Champions Japan in a two-game series at the Sapporo Dome on the 9th and 10th of November 2022 has been announced.

David Nilsson’s men return to the world stage with an action-packed line-up filled with international and ABL experience.

Leading the team are co-captains Tim Atherton and Tim Kennelly, with five players each from the Brisbane Bandits, Adelaide Giants and the Perth Heat, eight from the Melbourne Aces ABL champion team, the Sydney Blue Sox with three players and Robbie Perkins from Canberra Cavalry. Kyle Glogoski from Auckland Tuatara will make his debut for the team to round out a Team Australia side loaded with talent and experience.

The roster features some of Australia’s up and coming professional players who will debut for the Men’s team. Cameron Gibbens, Jarryd Dale, Rixon Wingrove and Solomon Maguire will come off professional seasons in the USA to debut for the Senior Men’s team.

It has been a long three-year absence of international baseball for our Men’s Team Australia side to which our representatives will be looking to pick up where they left off from the Premier12.

Baseball Australia CEO Glenn Williams, believes the team has what it takes to compete against the world number 1’s.

“It will be great to see this team compete against the Olympic Gold Medallists and current World Champions; it has been a while since they’ve had the chance to compete on the world stage and it will be a great content and the perfect start to a big six months for Team Australia with the WBC right around the corner.”

It will be the first senior international game for Samurai Japan since the Olympics where they claimed gold against the best in the world.

The two-game series will take place before the Australian Baseball League (ABL) season with ABL players set to join their teams for the commencement of the Opening Round.

Stay across Team Australia and Baseball.com.au social media for all the latest team and where to watch information.

30 September 2022 By Staff Writers

By Staff Writers

- Team Australia College Baseball

AUSTRALIAN PROSPECTS PICKED FOR MLB WORLD SELECT TEAM

Baseball Australia is proud to announce the seven young men that will represent us as part of the MLB World Select Team at the upcoming Arizona Fall Classic in Phoenix, AZ.

Max Stagg – SA

Nick Bertucci – VIC

Adam Bates – NSW

Jayden Kim – VIC

Liam Grant – NSW

Josh Nati – NSW

Alistair Tanner – SA

Stagg, Bertucci, Bates and Kim were all part of the Team Australia side that played in the U18 World Cup earlier this month in Florida. Team Australia concluded their campaign with a 7-2 victory over South Africa to finish ninth.

The group has been joined by Liam Grant, Josh Nati and Alistair Tanner who flew from Australia this week. Grant, Nati and Tanner participated at the U-16 National Championships in Redcliffe this year and were selected out of that event to join the older players.

National Player Development Manager, Andrew Riddell was at the U-18 tournament and has remained with the group ahead of the upcoming competition.

“It’s been an exciting and action-packed month, with the under 18’s taking on the best in the world and growing as a group, to now having these seven athletes compete at another exceptional level is a credit to the guys, their families and the opportunity they have been provided in Australia.”

“To travel, experience what international baseball is like and then to put on the MLB logo and represent a world selected team is amazing for our young players and will help them continue to develop as well as showing them how much work needs to be done to compete at the very top.”

One of the main purposes of the MLB World Select Team is to showcase members of MLB’s international academies, with players from eleven countries including Australia, Italy, Germany, Netherlands, Czech Republic, France and Brazil to be exposed to college/professional level baseball.

The team will be playing multiple games in Arizona in the leadup to the Arizona Fall Classic, which begins on the 29^th of September.

Make sure you keep up with the progress of the Australians in the MLB World Select Team via the Team Australia Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

30 September 2022 By Staff Writers

By Staff Writers

- Team Australia

U-18 BASEBALL WORLD CUP RECAP

Team Australia have concluded their XXX World Cup campaign with a 7-2 victory over South Africa to finish ninth. Touching down in Florida on 28^th of August, the touring team of over 45 players and coaches saw their first taste of international competition since 2019.

Bringing together some of Australia’s best underage players, the tour saw Team Australia preparing for the World Cup at The Perfect Game’s Fort Myers facility, which included lead up games against Chinese Taipei, Canada and the USA.

The WBSC’s 30th U-18 World Championship was contested over 50 games, with the world’s best young baseball prospects and teams battling it out over nine days of competition at LECOM Park and Ed Smith Stadium.

Group A featured host No. 5 USA, No. 3 Korea, No. 8 Netherlands, No. 12 Canada, No. 25 Brazil and No. 26 South Africa.

Group B featured world No. 1 Japan, No. 2 Chinese Taipei, No. 4 Mexico, No. 10 Australia, No. 13 Panama and No. 17 Italy.

The top three teams from Group A played the top three teams from Group B in the Super Round, with the top two teams meeting ‘For the Title of World Champion’ which was awarded to Team USA.

In Team Australia’s final game four Australian pitchers combined to pitch a one-hitter in their last game at the XXX WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup.

World No. 10 Australia closed their participation at the WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup with a 7-2 victory over South Africa, ranked 26th in the world, in the last game played at LECOM Park.

Travelling across the world to compete against the best in the World was an exciting experience for the athletes.

Baseball Australia’s GM of Performance Pathways & Player Development Michael Crooks put the tour into perspective.

“The opportunity for our talented young players to recommence international competition is critical for our athletes. With the majority of two years lost to lockdown and weather events in Australia, our players have not been able to play in any higher-level tournaments since January 2020. “

“While we have done everything in our power to simulate higher level events locally, there is nothing like international competition, and all of our touring party, players and coaches, will be better off for the experiences in August and September. We look forward to this tour providing the foundation for our player’s growth into the future.”

In earlier matches Australia kicked off their campaign with a loss to Mexico (9-5) Chinese Taipei (13-2) and Japan (0-10) before securing their first win again Italy (5-4) in Game 4. With the game ties at two, Australia scored three in the top of the seventh and then withstood Italy’s last attack to clinch the win.

On day five Team Australia has a narrow loss to Panama (2-3) and Canada held on in a (7-6) thriller to open Placement Round.

Brazil came within one strike from a win that would have meant a seventh-place finish with one game to play in the Placement Round, but Team Australia tied the game in the seventh with their first hit and went on to win (5-4) in the ninth.

Team Australia now returns to home to the 2023 WBSC U-18 Qualifier in December and the Australian Youth Championships returning to their regular scheduling in January.

Crooks said, “We have a very exciting summer of baseball planned for our performance pathways players. The return of the AYC’s under the new format trialled at the U16’s last July is exciting, but in addition, we have additional competition content that will tie into the event with our overseas partners that we will be announcing soon”

“Equally, the ability for the U-18 age group to get a taste of more international competition within the World Cup Qualifier in December will round out a huge summer for our players. We look forward to sharing the details of that event once they are finalised.”

Looking ahead the U-23 team begins their World Cup campaign on the 14^th of October. To keep up with all the action head to Team Australia’s Facebook and Instagram pages.

16 September 2022 By Staff Writers

By Staff Writers

ABL

BRING ON THE B5 WORLD CUP

Baseball Australia have qualified and will be entering a team in the inaugural Baseball5 World Cup. The event will be held in Mexico City, Mexico, 7-13 November 2022.

The team will compete in the inaugural world cup which will be a mixed gender event. Four (4) female and four (4) male players will make up the Australia team and travel to this historic event in Mexico City.

An event will be hosted in Sydney in the lead up to the World Cup to select the team that will travel.

Baseball Australia CEO Glenn Williams is excited to bring the Baseball 5 community together in Sydney before providing a pathway to the World Cup for the best B5 athletes in Australia.

“The inaugural Baseball5 World Cup promises to be an exciting event. Mexico City a vibrant and exciting place to host the first World Cup. We’re excited to be sending a team”

Baseball Australia are now calling for expressions of interest for people who would like to be considered for selection for the national team. Register your interest here – https://forms.gle/8Jr5dtSu41pwR1R9A

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